Battery clamp



Alig- 1935. R. E. ELLIS ET AL 2,011,537

BATTERY CLAMP Filed Dec. 6, 1954 Patented Aug. 13, 1935 BATTERY CLAMP Robert E. Ellis and Oscar Johnson, Moreland,

Idah

Application December 6, 1934, Serial No. 756,344

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a battery clamp and has for an object to provide an improved means of quickly attaching or detaching a battery cable to a battery post without the necessity of using any bolts or screws whose operation might be interfered with by the presence of corrosion.

A further object of this invention is to provide a battery cable terminal which may be clamped to the battery post by means of an extension key which is easily moved from either locked or unlocked position while the terminal is in position on the battery post.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, as will hereinafter become apparent, this invention comprises the constructions, combinations and arrangements of parts, hereinafter set forth, disclosed and shown on the accompanying drawing. In this drawing,

Figure 1 is a plan View of the invention,

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same,

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 3--3 of Figure 1, and

Figure 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 44 of Figure 1.

There is shown at H) a representation of the battery having a post II to which it is desired to detachably secure the battery cable |2. Secured to the battery cable I2 is the cable terminal or clamp l4 constituting this invention. This clamp or terminal M is preferably made of lead, copper, or other good suitable electrical conducting material.

This battery clamp or terminal l4 includes an arm l5 suitably secured to the battery cable l2 and ending in an eye it adapted to be placed down over the battery post The opening through the eye it is of such a diameter that it will just snugly fit down about the battery post II, this opening being shown at H.

A second opening l8 extends through the side of the eye it adjacent the arm |5 transversely of the eye it and intersects the opening I! therethrough. Mounted in this second opening 18 is a key l9 which is cut away as at 28 so as to make it eccentric along the meeting line between the eye opening I? and the transverse opening |8.

A handle 2| extends from the end of the key I9 and terminates in a curved portion 22 of such a size as to snugly fit over the top of the cable I2. The handle 2| is so secured to the key |9 so that the fiat sides of the eccentric 2|) coincide with the opening ii in the eye member 6 when the handle 2| is in the vertical position shown at 2| in Figure 3. As a means of insuring the proper placing of the flat portion of the eccentric 20 on the key I9, this eccentric 20 may be formed therein after the key H) has been placed through the transverse opening IS with the handle 2| properly attached. The key l9 may be placed therein so that it partly extends into the opening through the eye member l6. A suitable cutting tool is then used to ream away a portion of the key i9 extending into the opening while the handle 2| is in the position 2|.

With the handle 2| still in this position 2| the battery terminal I4 is then placed over the battery post H and tapped downward to the position shown in Figure 3. The handle 2| is then moved from the position 2| to the position 25 causing the eccentric portion 20 to clamp against the side of the battery post securely holding or clamping the cable |2 to the post against accidental removal.

When it is desired to intentionally remove the cable I2 from the post II, the handle member 2| is turned upward to the position 2| thereby releasing the eccentric 20 of the key |9 from contact with the side of the battery post I. Then the eye member I6 is lifted off the battery post using the member 2| as a handle or lifting means.

Any corrosion that may form on the post during operation of the battery III will obviously not interfere with the operation or effectiveness of the clamp formed by this invention, and no 3 screw driver or monkey wrench is necessary in the operation of this clamp. At most only a weight is necessary to tap the eye member I6 down over the post thereby making it easy to attach or remove the cable |2 from the battery m at any time without difiiculty.

The novel features and the operation of this device will be apparent from the foregoing description. While the device has been shown and the structure described in detail, it is obvious that this is not to be considered limited to the exact form disclosed and that changes may be made therein within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus set forth and disclosed the nature of this invention, What is claimed is:

A battery cable terminal clamp comprising an eye member secured to the battery cable, said eye member having a battery post receiving aperture extending therethrough, a second and cylindrical aperture extending through said eye member transverse to: said battery post aperture and partly coinciding with said battery post aperture, a cut away eccentric key pivotally extending through said transverse cylindrical aperture, a U-shaped handle member extending from said key, the base of the U of said handle being curved at right angles to the plane of the legs of the U of the handle, and of a diameter 5 to lie snugly about the battery cable when the key is in a locking position, the cut away portion of said key coinciding with the battery post aperture only while the key is in an unlocked position with the handle member in a raised position away from the battery cable.

ROBERT E. ELLIS. OSCAR JOHNSON. 

